Kinesthetic Bodily Intelligence: What It Is And How It Is Expressed
From the precise work of a surgeon saving lives to the graceful and sinuous movement of a dancer, through the mastery of the subtle gestures that give verisimilitude to the actions of an actor, the exercise of any of these professions requires a high degree of ability.
Most people might think that we are talking about physical capacity, but the truth is that there is much more: coordination, processing and expression of information and control of one’s own body and what it produces. In fact, what all these individuals manifest is nothing more than a form of intelligence, which Gardner already valued in his theory of multiple intelligences: bodily or kinesthetic intelligence
Kinesthetic or bodily kinesthetic intelligence is one of the eight basic types of intelligence proposed by Howard Gardner in his Theory of Multiple Intelligences In order to facilitate the understanding of this concept, it is advisable to first assess what this theory entails.
The Theory of Multiple Intelligences is based on the idea conceived by Howard Gardner and various collaborators at Harvard University that the type of knowledge valued in the educational and academic field does not usually provide sufficient information regarding intellectual capacity or intelligence. , understood as the capacity or set of capacities that allow the analysis and solution of problems as well as the correct adaptation to the environment
The author, visualizing that precisely the majority of intelligence tests, the very concept of IQ and the conceptions of it as a unique ability focused on the verbal and logical (the same type of information that is mostly valued at an academic level), He came to the conclusion that although until now they were not considered as such, there are other capacities beyond the verbal and logical that are essential for adaptation and “intelligent” behavior in the environment.
Gardner developed a theory in which he proposed that success, performance and even intellectual and adaptive capacity depended not on logical-verbal capacity but on a set of skills common to all human beings, to a greater or lesser degree, among which Previous ones were just one of them. He also relied on knowledge of cases of genius and extraordinary abilities between subjects with little ability to reason verbally. In conclusion: Gardner proposed that there are different types of intelligence.
The Theory of Multiple Intelligences proposes, derived from the research carried out by Gardner himself, a total of eight intelligences (although the theory is not closed to the possibility that there are more). They are logical-mathematical intelligence, linguistic intelligence, spatial intelligence, musical intelligence, interpersonal intelligence, intrapersonal intelligence, naturalistic intelligence and finally the intelligence that gives rise to this article: corporal-kinesthetic intelligence.
Body intelligence: what is it?
The set of bodily intelligence is called bodily intelligence. cognitive abilities that allow coordination of the mind with the rest of the body allowing fluid and precise control of it. Thanks to it we are able to manage our strength, balance, speed, coordination or precision, being a type of intelligence that allows automation and skill learning. Obviously, it is also linked to both fine and gross motor skills.
The use of this type of intelligence is very varied and allows correct adaptation to the environment and the achievement of goals and objectives. We mainly use this type of intelligence when handling instruments and tools, whether they are simple, complex or high precision, and it is also integrated into body intelligence. the ability to express emotion through body movement
This last aspect also has important implications in another sense, and that is that it derives from the fact that the psyche has a great influence on the body and the body on the psyche. In this way, knowing how to manage the body will also imply an improvement in the management of the mind at the level of self-knowledge and self-regulation.
These considerations about bodily intelligence are what lead us to consider that this type of intelligence is especially developed in professions that require great precision or physical ability such as acting, dance, painting, crafts or surgery.
An undervalued mental capacity
Bodily intelligence is a capacity of great value, its development and even its evolution being fundamental for human beings (the handling of instruments and tools has been basic to allow us to hunt and survive in prehistory, and as we have evolved it has been increasingly necessary in order to manage our social interactions and the progress of technology).
However, despite its great importance, it is an intelligence that is very undervalued: just look at the little time and little consideration that physical education has at an educational level, or the little social value given to most professions. who need it (except for very successful professionals, the majority of people who enter worlds such as dance and acting are seen as part of a separate world and even ignored, and professionals such as artisans today are rare and socially little taken into account. consider). The exception would be in cases such as those linked to medicine.
Perhaps it would be necessary to establish a change of mentality and begin to value that our body and the way we manage it They are just as important as conventional knowledge because at the end of the day in our daily lives we do not limit ourselves to knowing but also to doing.
